#business-banking
Choose and manage business banking relationships
Roughly two dozen fintechs, including Mercury and Upstart, applied for or received OCC national bank charters in 2026 — up from 14 applications in all of 2025 — to escape the sponsor-bank model exposed by the 2024 Synapse collapse and get direct FDIC insurance, lending authority, and payment-rail access.
As of mid-2026, competitive business savings accounts pay roughly 3.5%–3.75% APY while the national average sits near 0.4% — a $150,000 idle balance in a 0.01% checking account forgoes about $5,000 a year. A timeline-based framework for placing tax reserves, operating buffers, and balances above the $250,000 FDIC limit into high-yield savings, CD ladders, ICS/CDARS sweep programs, and Treasury money market funds.
Congress repealed the CFPB's $5 overdraft fee cap via the Congressional Review Act in May 2025, before it ever took effect — large banks now charge $10 to $36 per overdraft and collected over $12 billion in overdraft and NSF revenue in a year. Here's what the repeal means for small business bank accounts, which states are stepping in, and five concrete ways to stop paying the fee.
Positive Pay is a business bank service that matches every check against your issued-check list and flags mismatches the same day, a control most eligible small business accounts still don't use even though checks remain the most-targeted form of payments fraud.
Business wire transfers are governed by UCC Article 4A, not Regulation E, meaning a company can be held liable for a fraudulent wire if its bank's security procedure was commercially reasonable, even though 86% of the FBI's $3.05 billion in 2025 BEC losses moved via wire or ACH.
Learn how to open a business bank account step by step, including required documents for each business type, how to compare bank fees and features, common mistakes to avoid, and tips for choosing between national, community, and online banks.
A complete guide to international payments for small businesses. Compare wire transfers, online services, and multi-currency accounts. Learn about fees, exchange rates, IRS regulations, and how to save money sending payments abroad.
A comprehensive guide to choosing the best small business credit card. Compare cash back, travel rewards, low APR, and secured cards. Learn how to match your spending patterns to the right card and avoid common mistakes that cost businesses money.
An objective checklist for evaluating online business bank accounts through a Beancount lens, with practical criteria for data exports, safety, payment speed, operational controls, and onboarding.
